The E4 Path

The E4 Path offers lots of walking holiday opportunities on the Greek Island of Crete from gentle walks to very challenging hiking routes.

For those who like hiking, trekking, biking and walking and are up for a challenge then maybe the E4 European Long Distance Path, or at least part of it, will be right for you. If you want to hike the whole E4 trail allow yourself 3 - 4 weeks.

Although we've not walked the whole distance of the E4 Path in Crete, we have completed sections of it.

The E4 European Long Distance Path

The E4 European Long Distance Path begins in Spain and continues through France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece (including the length of Crete) and ends in Cyprus.

The whole E4 path is over 10,000 km long and was developed by the European Ramblers Association (ERA), which covers 55 rambler’s associations across Europe and was founded in 1969.

In Crete and throughout Greece the E4 path was founded and is maintained by the Hellenic Federation of Mountaineering and Climbing.

There is one large trekking or hiking route on the Greek Island of Crete, which is part of the E4 European Long Distance Path. The E4 trail covers the White Mountains (Lefki Ori), Mount Psiloritis (Mount Ida) and the Mount Dikti. The E4 Path is 320 km long.

It begins at Kastelli Kissamos in the west of Crete and crosses along the whole Island reaching Kato Zakros in the east where it ends. In Crete the E4 path is signposted by yellow markers and yellow and black arrows.

You will need a good map of Crete if you want to take on walking the E4 European Path in Crete. You will also need to note that in Crete and the whole of Greece you may be a little confused by some of the different spellings of the village, town and place names you may come across on maps or road signs.

For example, for the capital of Crete, Heraklion, you may see it as Heraklio, Irakleion, Iraklion or Iraklio.

Chania, the former capital, can be spelt as Hania or sometimes Xania.

Quite regularly you’ll find the letter ‘G’ as an alternative to the letter ‘Y’ as in Agios Nikolaos or Ayios Nikolaos. Sometimes added to this is the letter 'H' making it Aghios Nikolaos! And very commonly words with one ‘S’ can be seen with two, as in Lasithi or Lassithi.It is best to ask the locals if you are unsure.

The E4 Path in Crete

The E4 Path route is quite varied and can range from what amounts to simple walking on smooth asphalt roads to some hefty hiking in rugged gorges, right up to some real mountain trekking.

In parts the E4 trail is very overgrown, difficult to follow, and often not marked at all.

At Sougia, a small resort on the south coast, the E4 Path forks into two tracks, one along the coast, which is very rough, and one through the mountains. The tracks converge on the south coast near Frangokastello, but immediately branch out again into two sections.

The following table contains a list of the different sections of the E4 European Long Distance Path in Crete.

Common Western Stages

Start	End	Length	Note
Kissamos	Sfinari	22k	10k on roads
Sfinari	Chrissoskalitissa	32k	All on roads
Chrissoskalitissa	Paleochora	14½k	All on roads
Paleochora	Sougia	14½k	Hiking Paths

Coastal Stages

Start	End	Length	Note
Sougia	Agia Roumeli	20k	Rough hiking paths
Agia Roumeli	Loutro	1 3k	Hiking paths
Loutro	Frangokastello	19½k	13k on roads

Alpine Branch

Start	End	Length	Note
Sougia	Omalos	24½k	Two branches, one through Agia Irini, one through Livardes
Omalos	Katzivelli	18k	Marked mountain paths
Katzivelli	Askifou	20k	Mainly unmarked
Askifou	Frangokastello	19k	Via the Imbros Gorge

Northern Branch

Start	End	Length	Note
Frangokastello	Kato Rodakino	14k	Mainly on roads
Kato Rodakino	Agios Konstantinos	20½k	Mainly hiking paths
Agios Konstantinos	Armeni	15k	Hiking paths close to roads
Armeni	Arkadi	29k	Field roads and tracks
Arkadi	Garazo	32k	Mix of roads and paths
Garazo	Anogia	16k	Half on roads
Anogia	Nida Plateau	22k	Half on roads

Common Eastern Stages

Start	End	Length	Note
Nida Plateau	Ano Zaros	25k	Second half on roads
Nida Plateau (alternative)	Ano Zaros	19k	Sparsely marked footpaths
Ano Zaros	Ano Asites	21½k	Elevation gain(>1000m)
Ano Asites	Ano Archanes	9k	Mainly footpaths
Ano Archanes	Kastelli	28½k	Last section on roads
Kastelli	Agios Georgios	20½k	First section on roads
Agios Georgios	Alm Selakano	17k	Mountain paths through the Dikti range
Alm Selakano	Prina	18k	Dirt roads
Prina	Vassiliki	19k	Mountain roads
Vassiliki	Ghryssopigi	18½k	Footpaths
Ghryssopigi	Ziros	17k	Last section on roads
Ziros	Kato Zakros	16½k	Footpaths

Mountain Refuge Huts

Hikers and trekkers embarking upon the E4 trail need to think about pre-planning their accommodation. This applies in particular to the alpine leg of the E4 Path, when any proposed stay at a mountain refuge hut needs to be prearranged.

The mountaineering clubs of Chania, Rethymnon, Heraklion and Lassithi maintain the following huts:

Name	Location	EOS	Altitude (m)
Kallergi	Near the Samaria Gorge	Chania	1600
Volika	Volikas Keramion	Chania	1260
Katsiveli Svourihtis	Svourihtis foothills	Chania	1970
Tavri	Plateau of Askyfou	Chania	1200
Toumbotos Prinos	Mount Psiloritis	Rethymnon	1551
Analipsis	Near the Ideon Cave	Iraklion	1420
Prinos	Asites, East Psiloritis	Iraklion	1100
Limnarkarou	Lasithi Plateau	Lasithi	1350